Generally speaking, indicia readers (e.g., barcode scanners) are electronic devices for recognizing and decoding printed indicia (e.g., barcodes). Imaging indicia readers include a group of lenses (i.e., lens group) for focusing a real image of a target (e.g., barcode) onto an image sensor (e.g., CCD), that converts the real image into a digital signal. In a typical scanning scenario, the image sensor captures a digital image of a barcode, and a processor running algorithms detects and decodes the barcode from the image. The decoded information form this barcode is conveyed to a host device (e.g., mobile computing device).
Most mobile computing devices (e.g., smart-phones) have general-purpose cameras that can be used for indicia reading. As a result, numerous applications towards this purpose have been developed. While these applications perform reasonably well for the casual user, they lack the features, functions, and performance associated with dedicated imaging indicia readers. Illumination, alignment, and image quality may all suffer when using a mobile computing device's general purpose camera for barcode scanning.
Because most users want to carry only one mobile computing device (i.e., MCD), they will be reluctant to trade their mobile device for a dedicated indicia reader. A need, therefore, exists for a dedicated imaging indicia-reading module integrated within a hand-held MCD.
Integration of the indicia-reading module within a host MCD places severe limitations on the module's design. Unique design approaches and construction methods must be combined to allow for such novel integration. For example, reducing size often necessitates splitting a circuit board into a plurality of circuit boards positioned to best fit within a small module housing. Interconnection between these boards is necessary but often bulky due to the connectors required. A need therefore, exists for a board interconnection scheme to allow for the size reduction of an indicia-reading module without sacrificing performance.